“Got it?” Preston barks.
“Yeah, I’ve got it.” I don’t. Not even close. But I doubt he’ll take pity on me.
“Don’t let us down.” He pauses. “Don’t let Nash down.”
The words land with a thud in my head. He would have to go and say that, wouldn’t he? “I won’t. I promise.”
A beeping noise tells me he’s already ended the call. I don’t even know if he heard me.
I need to find a way to convince her. And I have to pray Lucas doesn’t change up his routine tonight of all nights.
Lucas. The thought of him leaves me leaning against the wall, breathless and guilty. It was different before I knew about him being her father. This is going to crush him. And I’m going to have to pretend to know nothing about it.
But I made a promise.
And she killed Nash.
I don’t have a choice but to go through with this.
I push away from the wall, hiding the phone before exiting the stall. I can do this. I have to. She needs to pay, and this is the only way.
It isn’t easy, faking a happy expression when I set eyes on her in the library. Not that it’s ever been easy, but today it’s extra challenging. I make it a point to ignore Quinton, sitting in the corner, his eyes following my every move as I walk through the cavernous space.
“Hey. How’s it going?” Preston was right about one thing: this girl is hard up. I can’t imagine anybody being so genuinely excited just to see me. She’s practically beaming when I reach her, where she’s chatting with Brittney at the desk.
“Pretty good.” I slide my returned book across the counter.
Brittney’s eyes bulge. “You read it already?”
“I don’t have much else to do but read,” I explain with a shrug. “And it was really gripping, too.”
“We have the author’s entire collection here.”
“I’ll have to check out the rest of it.” I can’t believe I’m standing here having this conversation like everything is normal. Like I give a crap about reading right now while cold sweat runs down the back of my neck.
“Come on. Let’s take a look.” Aspen leads the way, and I follow without thinking. My thoughts are churning, my heart racing. What happens if she turns me down? How could I convince her?
Oh, shit. What happens if she mentions it to her stupid, murdering husband? I’m sure he could be shitting his brains out, and it wouldn’t matter. No way would he let her leave his side if he knew it was me she was meeting up with. I wonder what know-it-all Preston would say if I posed these questions to him. He’d probably tell me to figure it out before hanging up on me.
Now that we’re out of Quinton’s line of vision, I have to get this over with. If I don’t do it now, I’ll lose my nerve. “Hey, do you know if the sunroom is left unlocked at night?” I ask as I follow her.
“Sure. It’s open all the time. I love hanging out there.” She throws a curious look over her shoulder. “How come?”
“You’re going to think it’s totally dorky. I shouldn’t have said anything.” I even tuck my hair behind my ear like I’m shy or whatever.
“No, come on. What’s up?”
“There’s a meteor shower tonight. I thought it would be pretty cool to watch from there.”
Goddamnit. He was right. “Oh, wow! What a cool idea. You could take a blanket, lie on your back, and watch the stars. That sounds really neat.”
“That’s what I thought. I just didn’t know if I would be able to get in tonight.”
“You shouldn’t have any trouble.” She comes to a stop, turning to me. “Were you planning to go by yourself?”
“I didn’t think anybody else would be interested—not like I know a bunch of people, anyway.”
“Would you mind some company?” She smacks her open palm against her forehead, sighing. “Sorry. I keep telling myself not to be too much, but it’s like I can’t help it.”
“It’s okay.” It’s too easy. That’s what it is. The girl is determined to walk headfirst into her own destruction. Far be it from me to stop her. “And for what it’s worth, I would love company. Honestly, it might be kind of creepy, being there all by myself. I don’t really have any friends around here.”
“Yeah. I know how that feels.” Right, which is why she bends over backward to be nice to me. I need to keep reminding myself of that. She’s not acting this way because of me, but rather because of her. What she’s been through. Not like it matters since it works in my favor either way.
“Can I ask you something, though?” I look over my shoulder to make sure Quinton didn’t slip out of his chair and follow us. “Do you think you could come alone? No offense, but he’s kind of intimidating. I understand he hates me, but…”